Like being in a band!

A response to the Misunderstood Activity
created by Mark Shannelly (@mshannelly)

Number of views: 160

My misconception is that video game design is just “playing games all day.” (Grr…)

While there are indeed fun aspects of making a video game, it is absolutely not just sitting around playing games and eating pizza. Creating a video game from scratch (this could be applied to anything, really) is a challenging, but rewarding experience. The feeling of seeing that first download on Steam is exhilirating!

Now, it is hard to think of an allegory for this, so I am going to strip it down a bit to be just about creating a game.

“Making a game is like being in a band.”

Video games are constructed in parts, using modular assets and (usually) in an agile environment. At its most basic, a video game is Code, Art, Sound, and Story. These four aspects need to be there, and they need to work in concert (pun intended) for a game to be enjoyable.

If you have the four departments all working out of synch, the end product will be a mess. This is the same as a band: singer, guitarist, bassist, drummer, keyboardist, etc. if everyone is out of synch, the rhythm will be terrible. If every member is playing in a different key, the melody will be terrible (or it’s a jazz band.)

I have used this allegory every year I have been teaching!